Louisiana House Bill HCR105

Louisiana 2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 5/11/26
• Refer: 5/12/26
• Report Pass: 5/19/26
• Engrossed: 5/26/26
• Passed: 5/28/26

Caption

HEALTH: Urges the Louisiana Department of Health and health insurers to increase reimbursement for Behavioral Health Crisis Centers

Summary

House Concurrent Resolution 105 is a nonbinding legislative request urging the Louisiana Department of Health and Louisiana commercial health insurance payors to increase reimbursement rates for Behavioral Health Crisis Centers (BHCCs) that operate under a Crisis Receiving Center (CRC) license. The resolution explains that Louisiana’s crisis response system was designed to provide mobile crisis response, brief crisis support, crisis centers, and crisis stabilization, and that CRC-licensed BHCCs are intended to provide both 23-hour crisis stabilization and longer 3- to 7-day crisis care at the same site for higher-acuity patients. The resolution argues that current Medicaid reimbursement does not cover the cost of the staffing model required for CRC-licensed facilities, citing an independent rate analysis showing a per diem cost of $1,163 for the first 23 hours of care compared with a current Medicaid rate of $549.40. It states that this reimbursement gap has limited the number of providers able to operate in Louisiana, leaving only one provider of this type in the state and preventing other centers from opening or remaining financially viable.

Impact

Because HCR105 is a concurrent resolution, it does not change statutory law or create enforceable obligations. Its practical effect is to formally encourage the Louisiana Department of Health and commercial insurers to review and raise reimbursement rates for CRC-licensed BHCC services, which could affect Medicaid payment policy, provider participation, and access to behavioral health crisis care if acted upon administratively or by insurers. The resolution also highlights the licensing distinction between Behavioral Health Service providers and Crisis Receiving Centers, and the funding implications of staffing requirements for crisis stabilization services.

Sentiment

The overall sentiment reflected in the bill text is strongly supportive of increasing reimbursement for crisis behavioral health providers. The resolution frames the issue as a workforce, access, and system-capacity problem, emphasizing the importance of crisis stabilization services in reducing emergency room use and law enforcement involvement. No votes or committee transcripts are provided, but the enrolled status and lack of recorded opposition in the available materials suggest the measure moved forward without visible controversy in the record provided.

Contention

The main point of contention is financial: whether Medicaid and commercial payors should pay substantially more for CRC-licensed BHCC services to cover required 24-hour staffing and higher-acuity care. Supporters of higher rates argue that current reimbursement is too low to sustain providers and expand access, while any opposing view would likely focus on cost increases for the state and insurers. A secondary issue is the policy choice to prioritize this specialized crisis model over other behavioral health service settings, since the resolution specifically distinguishes CRC-licensed centers from other BHCC providers and ties reimbursement to the more intensive service model.